Safety fins: whale statue saves train from crashing to the ground
2 November 2020, 14:14
A metro train that ploughed through stop blocks at a station encountered an unlikely twist of fate - being saved by a whale sculpture.
The carriages of the service in the Dutch city of Rotterdam were left balancing perilously 10 metres above the ground after being saved from plummeting from the raised metro line by the plastic whale tale.
The crash happened just after midnight on Monday morning and awoke nearby residents.
No passengers were on board and the driver reportedly managed to free himself without injury.
Dozens gathered to admire the unusual spectacle as authorities worked to place the metro train back in position, despite pleas to stay away and abide by coronavirus restrictions.
A spokeswoman for the local security authority said: "A team of experts is investigating how we can make it safe and get it down. It's tricky."
The artwork, Saved by the Whale’s Tail, was erected in 2002 near the De Akkers station in Spijkenisse on the outskirts of Rotterdam, in the Dutch province of South Holland.
It is unclear what caused the train to overrun.
